When I first fell in love with photography I shot just about everything I could think of, except people. I’m sure mostly because it’s a bit intimidating. I know if someone who I don’t know raises a camera at me I’m immediately wondering why and what in the world are they going to do with that. But over the years, the more I shoot the more I have enjoyed capturing portraits of people. And of those I prefer people who are doing something or are telling a story with their actions. I am sure this is why I always enjoyed photographing musicians and performers. There is always a story to be told with the image.

The image below was taken at Sherwood Forest Faire and I’m not even sure if the gentleman knew that I had taken his picture. I find this type of candid portraiture to be both fulfilling and mysterious. The fulfilling portion comes from being able to capture a moment in it’s truest sense. There is no posing, no setup, nothing forced. You just see the image in your mind and you capture the natural essence of the person without hindering the scene. The mysterious part is that you don’t have any knowledge of what the story truly is. The emotion was caught and there was no conversation or interaction involved, thus leaving you only guessing what the thoughts where behind the eyes.

I much prefer the alternate method of interacting with people prior to, during, or immediately after capturing their portrait. I like to spend those few moments sharing a bit of myself and getting to know just a fraction of them. I probably should have with this guy, but he just seemed so into his own thoughts I just couldn’t bring myself to interrupt.